Full Moon Dominates Planet-Filled Night Sky Tonight

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The full moon of March takes charge of the evening sky tonight,
but Jupiter, Venus, Mars and other solar system objects are
putting on a show for stargazers as well.

March's full moon peaked at 4:39 a.m. EST (0939 GMT) this morning
(March 8), though the bright moon generally appears full to
casual observers both a day before and after the exact time of
its full phase.

This month's
full moon is usually called the Lenten Moon, but it goes by
many other names as well. In Algonquian, for example, it's known
as the Worm Moon, a reference to the softening soils of spring
that make wriggling worms available to birds returning from their
wintering grounds.

The full moon occurs every month when the moon is on the opposite
side of Earth from the sun, so that its face is completely
illuminated by sunlight. [ Infographic:
The Moon's Phases ]

But the moon isn't the only skywatching show on offer tonight.
Jupiter and Venus, for example, are drawing closer and closer
together in the sky, on their way toward a rare conjunction on
March 15. For the next few days, Mercury will join them, visible
a bit lower in the sky.

Skywatchers with binoculars may even be able to see Uranus just
below Mercury, and the dwarf planet Ceres — the largest object in
the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter — nearby.

Observers at higher latitudes may also be treated to a dazzling
display of the auroras, also known as the northern and southern
lights. An
intense solar storm erupted Tuesday (March 6), sending
billions of tons of solar plasma streaking into space. These
particles have begun hitting Earth's atmosphere already, and they
should cause supercharged auroras close to our planet's poles.

All of this skywatching activity comes on the heels of another
celestial treat. The closest approach of Mars in more than two
years occurred Monday (March 5), when the Red Planet approached
within 62.6 million miles (100.7 million kilometers) of Earth.
The milestone occurs once every 26 months, which is the time it
takes Mars to complete a single trip around the sun.

"Sixty-three million miles never seemed so close," skywatcher
Andrew Kwon told SPACE.com after observing the event. Kwon used a
small telescope to capture stunning view of Mars that revealed
the planet's northern ice cap and other surface features.

Because of its relative closeness, Mars is currently shining
extremely bright and offers a dazzling target for skywatchers.
You can find Mars tonight appearing bright reddish-orange above
the full moon.

The Red Planet has come much nearer in the past, however. In
2003, Mars came within 34.8 million miles (56 million km) of our
planet — the closest the two planets have been in almost 60,000
years.

If you snap an amazing photo of the moon, Mars, Venus, Jupiter or
any other skywatching target, and would like to share it for a
possible story or image gallery, please contact SPACE.com
managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.